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Vulcan
, Vulcan system | quadrant = Alpha Quadrant | image2 = T'Pau, 2154.jpg | imagecap2 = T'Pau, a female Vulcan and Syrrannite (2154) }} The '''Vulcans, or Vulcanians , were a warp-capable humanoid species from the planet . They were widely renowned for their strict adherence to logic and reason as well as their remarkable stoicism. In 2161, their homeworld became a founding member of the United Federation of Planets. ( ; ; ; ) Vulcans were known by the Borg as Species 3259. ( ) History and politics :Main article: Vulcan history In 2154, T'Pol stated that Vulcans had evolved on Vulcan. ( ) Roughly a century later, however, Spock theorized that the Vulcans might be descendants of Sargon's species. ( ) In 2369, evidence was discovered that several species including the Romulans, and therefore also the Vulcans, could be traced back to DNA that had been seeded on many planets by ancient humanoids 4.5 billion years ago. ( ) The Vulcans were once an extremely violent and emotional people (even by Earth standards) who waged almost constant warfare on one another. ( ; ; ) Paranoia and homicidal rage were common. ( ) They believed in a variety of gods, such as war, peace, and death. ( ) As their level of technology improved, the Vulcans eventually reached a point where their violent nature threatened the extinction of their own species. ( ) In an effort to avoid this fate, a Vulcan named Surak developed a new philosophy, thereby igniting the Time of Awakening. Surak maintained that the root cause of all the problems on Vulcan lay in the uncontrolled outpouring of the people's emotions. His followers swore to live their lives by an ethical system devised by Surak and based purely on logical principles. Emotions were to be controlled and repressed. ( ) Although this new philosophy spread rapidly across Vulcan, a minority, many of whom were known as "those who march beneath the raptor's wings", rejected Surak's ideals. A destructive war began, including the use of atomic bombs, and among the victims was Surak himself. ( ) Eventually, however, those who opposed logic left Vulcan and founded colonies elsewhere ( ) – most notably on the planet Romulus, where they founded what eventually became the Romulan Star Empire. ( ; ) At some point in history, the Romulans and the Vulcans engaged in a hundred-year-long war against one another. The war was instigated by the actions of a member of the Q Continuum. ( ) Another group that rejected Surak's philosophy was known as the "v'tosh ka'tur", or "Vulcans without logic". The v'tosh ka'tur believed in controlling emotions by allowing themselves to actively experience them rather than suppressing them. Many of these also left Vulcan, and took up a ic existence. ( ) At least one planet studied by the Federation was inhabited by "proto-Vulcan humanoids" without warp technology or any direct ties to the Vulcans or the Romulans; the Mintakans possessed technology identified as Bronze Age, but their culture was described by Federation scientists as generally peaceful and highly logical, much like their Vulcan brethren. Eventually, an error during a Federation science mission led to the exposure of Mintakans to Federation technology and society, exempting them from the Prime Directive. ( ) The Vulcans conducted a series of survey missions to the Sol system, as early as 1957. ( ) Vulcans were, in fact, one of the first species to develop warp drive, though a century passed between the first warp flight and the breaking of the warp 2 barrier. ( ) T'Pol told Archer that Vulcans "don't share" Humans' "enthusiasm for space exploration," but a Syrrannite on Vulcan later advised Archer that this may not have been true. ( ) , Vulcan became warp-capable after 1947. See "Little Green Men" - Trivia for more information.}} The official First Contact between Vulcans and Humans came on April 5, 2063, when a Vulcan survey ship, the , detected the warp flight of Zefram Cochrane's Phoenix. The Vulcans met with Cochrane at his launch site on the day following the flight. ( ) The Vulcans eventually became Earth's "big brothers" in a way, advising Earth officials on how to proceed into the galaxy. The Vulcan High Command considered Humans volatile and similar to Vulcans before the Time of Awakening, and so attempted to slow down Humanity's move into the galaxy until the time was right. ( ) By the 21st and 22nd centuries, the Vulcans had also made contact with the Cardassians, Trill, Tholians, Klingons, and scores of other races. ( ; ) In contrast to their tradition of peaceful exploration, the Vulcans had a long history of border skirmishes with the neighboring Andorians. The Vulcan High Command used an ancient monastery at P'Jem as a secret listening post to spy on the Andorians until June of 2151 when the listening post was by the Andorians and a landing party of . Later, the Humans helped negotiate a peace between the Vulcans and Andorians over a disputed class D planetoid known to the Vulcans as Paan Mokar. ( ) Vulcan also became less tolerant of political and philosophical challenges towards the High Command's operations, notably engaging in purges of the Syrrannite group, who claimed that Vulcan society was no longer following the teachings of Surak. These tensions came to a head in a crisis called the Vulcan Reformation, which resulted in the overthrow of the High Command (and its leader, V'Las, who was secretly allied with the Romulans), and a restructuring of the Vulcan government under the leadership of Kuvak and T'Pau. One of the first acts of the new government was to end the policy of holding back Human expansion into the galaxy. ( ) As of the 23rd century, Vulcan had never been conquered in its collective memory. That memory went so far back that Vulcans could not conceive of a conqueror. ( ) , Spock declines to have a drink with McCoy by saying that his people were "spared the dubious benefits of alcohol"; McCoy scorns Spock's refusal by stating that he now knows why Vulcan was conquered. This would seem to contradict the above. A possible solution could be that he is referring to the Romulan infiltration in 2154, which could be considered to be a conquest.}} By the 24th century, Vulcan remained one of the principal Federation members, and was deeply involved at all levels of that society. Vulcans were present in the Federation colonies found within the Demilitarized Zone established between the United Federation of Planets and the Cardassian Union by the terms of the Federation-Cardassian Treaty of 2370; they were among the colonists' representatives during discussions with the Cardassians concerning terrorist attacks by the anti-Cardassian Maquis movement established in the Zone. At least one Vulcan, Sakonna, acted as a gun runner and interrogator for the Maquis and made use of her people's ability to mind meld in the latter role. ( ) The Vulcans' tradition of exploration continued; in the 24th century, a Vulcan ship was the first to make formal contact with a Gamma Quadrant civilization, upon encountering the Wadi. ( ) The Vulcans were at the forefront of exploration in the Gamma Quadrant, encountering the Rakhari and finding the remains of the Hur'q civilization. ( ) In the 24th century, the Vulcan ministry of security was known as the V'Shar. ( ) By 2369, the Vulcans had a saying known to the Federation: "We're here to serve." ( ) Despite the enmity between the Federation and the Romulan Star Empire, some Vulcans attempted to forge a more cordial relationship with their cousins, ultimately hoping to reunify the two cultures. Many of these efforts met with little success. ( ) Mirror universe History turned out much differently for the Vulcans of the mirror universe. When the Vulcans made first contact with Earth of this universe in 2063, shot the first Vulcan to publicly set foot on Terran soil, believing his vessel to be the vanguard of an intended invasion. The Terrans stormed the and studied Vulcan technology. Eventually, the Vulcans were conquered by the Terran Empire. ( ) referred to the Vulcans' arrival on Earth as being part of an "invasion force", though it is unclear if this is correct, or an assumption based on Archer's paranoia or the Empire's propaganda.}} By the 2150s, Vulcans were considered slaves to Humans and not treated as equals. A number of Vulcans and Vulcan ships rebelled against the Terran Empire, but by 2267, their attempts seem to have been unsuccessful. By that time, however, it appeared that Vulcans, such as , were treated with more respect and feared by some Terrans. ( ; ) In the 2370s, the Vulcans served as slaves to the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance. Using fans, several of them cooled aboard . ( ) Some Vulcans, such as , joined the Terran Rebellion. ( ) Alternate reality In the alternate reality, the planet was destroyed by a Romulan named Nero in 2258. Over six billion Vulcans were killed, with an estimated 10,000 survivors. After witnessing the atrocity, noted in his log that the Vulcan species had become endangered. ( ) Spock's prime reality counterpart founded a colony for the survivors, which, by the following year, had been settled and named New Vulcan. ( ) interview with screenwriters and producers Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman, Orci accepted one fan's argument that the 10,000 figure seems rather low for a space-faring species and responded, "Let's just say then that the 10,000 does not count off worlders!" However, in another interview with Orci and Kurtzman (published later in 2009), they stated, "We figure it's a mix of both – some survivors and some off worlders." ( )}} Physiology Vulcans were generally similar to Humans in appearance, distinguished mainly by their pointed-ears and up-swept eyebrows. Their skin color was most commonly pale with a bronze or greenish tint, though some had brown skin. Vulcan physiognomy could resemble Humans of European, Asian, or African descent. ( ; ; ) Most Vulcans had straight, glossy black hair, though brown and/or curly hair was also possible. Vulcans had body hair similar to Humans, and some males could be very hirsute. Vulcan males were capable of growing facial hair but most chose to shave it. ( ; ; ; ; ) Vulcan teeth included anterior tricuspids. They might be protected from decay for decades by sealing them with a trifluorinate compound. ( ) In contrast to their external similarities, Vulcan internal anatomy differed radically from that of Humans. For instance, their heart was where a Human's liver would normally be, ( ; ) and beat several hundred times per minute. ( ) They also had no appendix. ( ) They had mitochondria. ( ) Vulcan blood was copper-based and was copper- or rust-colored when deoxygenated in the veins and green when oxygenated in the arteries (although it is unclear if this transport mechanism was a hemocyanin as in Earth molluscs). Bruises and dermal abrasions took on a greenish color. ( ; ; ; ); (see also ) Director Marc Daniels. Although the concept was to have been established in an earlier episode than it ultimately was, Gene Roddenberry didn't approve of the notion. "I think Gene thought that idea was going too far, but they kept it in later episodes," stated Daniels. "The green blood was my idea, because if Spock was going to have a yellow complexion, he ought to have green blood." (Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages, p. 29)|A deleted scene from established that Vulcan perspiration carries traces of copper salts, detectable with a spectrograph beam. }} Vulcan body chemistry used little, if any, sodium chloride compared to that of Humans. ( ) Vulcans possessed a highly efficient respiratory system to extract the oxygen they needed from Vulcan's thin atmosphere. They were most comfortable in high temperatures, which was natural given the hot, arid climate of their homeworld. A Vulcan of advanced age may become more sensitive to lower temperatures. ( ; ) , Vulcans were more sensitive to cold than Humans. This was also supported by Mike and Denise Okuda. ("The Andorian Incident", text commentary, ENT Season 1 DVD special feature)}} The Vulcan digestive tract was highly adaptable. Although alien foods, notably Human food, would occasionally disagree with a Vulcan, given time, their body could adapt to the alien food. ( ) Vulcan hearing was very sensitive. ( ; ) Vulcan females possessed a heightened sense of smell. ( ) , which characterized Spock as having "super sensitive hearing," so as to explain why, in that episode, he hears the sound of a nearby phaser on overload before Kirk does.|In the first draft script of , it was said that Vulcans found Nausicaans smelled even worse than Humans did.}} Having evolved on a planet which was mostly desert, Vulcans developed ways of surviving in desert conditions. For example, they could survive for several days without water and had inner eyelids which protected their eyes. ( ; ) Vulcans had a superior metabolism to Humans. Caffeine and sapotoxins had little effect on them. ( ) They were also capable of surviving for long durations without food or sleep. Under stress, Vulcans could do without sleep for weeks. ( ) Tuvok once claimed that, as a Vulcan, he was capable of going without sleep for two weeks, ( ) although, shortly after making this claim, he was observed to fall asleep in the command chair after having gone a little over ten days without sleep. ( ) Vulcans were, on average, three times physically stronger than Humans, and had considerably faster reflexes. ( ) Vulcans were very sensitive to nitrous oxide gas, which rapidly rendered them unconscious. ( ) Vulcans typically had a lifespan of two hundred years or more. ( ; ) SpockChest.jpg|The Vulcan male chest T'Pol naked.jpg|The Vulcan posterior Vulcan spine.jpg|The Vulcan spinal cord T'Pol, 2161.jpg|T'Pol, a female Vulcan (2161) Spock, 2267.jpg|Spock, a Vulcan/Human hybrid (2267) Tuvok, 2377.jpg|Tuvok, a Vulcan male (2377) Brain Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the Vulcan physiology was the brain. The Vulcan brain was described as "a puzzle, wrapped inside an enigma, housed inside a cranium." ( ) A Vulcan's brain was in direct control of most of the bodily functions, acting as a control unit for many organs. Despite this, a Vulcan body from which the brain had been removed was capable of functioning and even walking around (albeit in a zombie-like state) with a portable life support system. ( ) Unlike most humanoid species, traumatic memories were not only psychologically disturbing to Vulcans, but had physical consequences as well. The Vulcan brain, in reordering neural pathways, could literally lobotomize itself. ( ) Vulcans learned to gain conscious control of many of these functions, allowing them to regulate their bodies to a high degree by simple will power. When injured, a Vulcan could go into a trance-like state, using this ability to concentrate all of his or her energy on repairing the injury. ( ) However, Vulcans do have certain levels of pain they are unable to suppress and must endure the experience. ( ) This trance could be self-induced and gave the physical appearance of near-death. It was similar, in principle, to Vulcan neuro-pressure techniques which could be used to relax the mind and body. ( ; ; ) The substance trellium-D acted as a neurotoxin to Vulcans, destroying the neural pathways which controlled their emotions. Treatment had to be provided quickly after exposure; otherwise, the damage was irreversible. ( ) The most famous aspect of the Vulcan brain was the inherent telepathic abilities, such as the mind meld. Vulcans were natural touch-telepaths. Though considerable training was required to utilize this ability to the fullest (this would be performing the fal-tor-pan), simpler contacts did not require any concentration, training, or even conscious knowledge of the act. ( ) Vulcans called focal points in the bioelectric field of the brain qui'lari. ( ) Stronger minds were capable of non-contact telepathic projection and scanning, usually over short distances, ( ; ) but sometimes even over interstellar distances. ( ; ; ) Another psionic ability of the Vulcan race was the telepathic suggestion or compulsion, consciously performed by Spock, ( ) Sybok, ( ) Tuvok, ( ) and T'Pol, ( ) and unconsciously performed by Sarek. ( ) Although Vulcans did not, typically, allow themselves to experience uncontrolled strong emotions, they could sense them in others. ( ) Besides the Trill, who achieved this through the zhian'tara ritual, Vulcans were the only other known humanoid race capable of performing a synaptic pattern displacement, or the transfer of one individual's consciousness into another. Similar feats were also performed by the people of Sargon's planet, Janice Lester, Dr. Ira Graves, Rao Vantika, and Tieran, though they used technology instead of psionic abilities to achieve it. ( ; ; ; ; ) Some Vulcans may have demonstrated an ability known as telekinesis. ( ) , as Spock is being taken to the Seleya monastery to perform the fal-tor-pan ritual, the "priestesses" are not carrying the bier by its handles, and instead hold their hands above it. This could suggest the Vulcan masters at Mount Seleya used psionic abilities to levitate and move the bier, although it could have been use of anti-gravity technology.|The non-canon Vulcan's Soul novel Exodus suggests that the priests of Gol and Mount Seleya are able to use telekinesis.}} The psycho-suppression system responsible for the Vulcan suppression of emotions was located in the mesiofrontal cortex. ( ) Approximately every seven years, adult Vulcans had to endure pon farr, the Vulcan mating period. It was marked by intense emotions and primal urges (known as plak tow, or "blood fever") that could kill the Vulcan if not satisfied. Physiological symptoms included elevated dopamine levels and fever. For such an orderly society of quiet sobriety, the madness which accompanied the outbreak of pon farr was an unavoidable evil. ( ; ; ) 's pon farr in the mirror universe (referred to in ) was naturally occurring or prematurely induced.|A central part of Vonda N. McIntyre's novelization's seventh chapter has Spock becoming intoxicated from eating a candy mint while on Earth, from the high sucrose content in it. This had no basis in canon, however.}} Medical conditions There were several diseases from which the Vulcan species suffered, including: *Pa'nar Syndrome *Tuvan Syndrome *Bendii Syndrome *Choriocytosis Hybridization Vulcans and Humans cannot reproduce without medical intervention, per T'Pol and Phlox. ( ) In 2155, Terra Prime extremists created a binary clone from T'Pol and Trip Tucker. The child, whom they called Elizabeth, had many genetic flaws due to her creation and died. ( ) In 2230, Spock was born on Vulcan to Sarek and Amanda Grayson. He was the first Vulcan/Human hybrid to survive to adulthood. ( ; ; ) Society The government on Vulcan was a representative democracy. Individual political advancement was based on meritocratic principles. ( ) The Vulcans held a number of spiritual beliefs, though little is known about the details. Their religious system was polytheistic. They also believed in the katra, the soul and consciousness of a person, which could be transferred psionically prior to death. ( ; ; ; ; ) Vulcans were generally non-violent, but logic dictated that combat was sometimes necessary. Vulcans could and did use weapons and practiced martial arts called tal-shaya and Suus Mahna. Most later Vulcans were vegetarians. ( ; ; ) , another Vulcan martial art was named as Sha'mura.}} Vulcans were also known for their high degree of honesty. They were extremely reluctant to tell a lie, and indeed it was said that "Vulcans could not lie." However, they would do so for what they perceived as logical reasons, though they rarely referred to their dishonesty as "lying." ( ; ; ) For instance, an elder denied the existence of technology and spies at the monastery at P'Jem in order to protect an ongoing surveillance operation. ( ). Also, T'Pol's second foremother directly lied to another Vulcan, telling the commander of a rescue party that her crewmate had died in a shuttle crash, so that he could remain on Earth to "study" humanity. ( ) In 2259 of the alternate reality, Spock managed to deceive Khan Noonien Singh into transporting armed torpedoes aboard the USS Vengeance'' as Khan believed they still carried members of his crew. Khan wasn't aware that Spock had anticipated his betrayal and removed Khan's crew from the torpedoes with the intent to detonate them and cripple the Vengeance. When Khan stated that he'd know if they weren't his, Spock assured him that "Vulcans do not lie''" and that "the '''torpedoes' were his". This demonstrated that Vulcans, while they still technically told the truth, didn't always necessarily tell the entire truth if it was to their advantage''. (Star Trek Into Darkness) On at least one occasion, Spock lied without any apparent logical reason (and, in fact, for a reason apparently consisting of nothing more than humor), when he claimed to not have seen Kirk's last orders to himself and Doctor McCoy. ( ) However, this may, in fact, have been a result of those orders themselves, as Kirk had, in the orders, instructed Spock to follow McCoy's lead on intuitive and emotional matters, and McCoy had just refused to admit to seeing the orders. Tuvok revealed a most instructive insight into Vulcans' attitude toward lying when responding to Seven of Nine questioning him as to whether Vulcans were capable of lying; he replied, "We are capable of telling lies. However, I have never found it prudent or necessary to do so." ( ) Naturally, the development of a Vulcan's lifelong devotion towards logic began at a very early age. Vulcan parents utilized learning tools, such as pleenoks, to train their infants in primary logic. ( ) Vulcan children also began to learn how to detach themselves from their emotions as well. ( ; ; ) Despite this early training in logic, Vulcan children in nursery school were allowed to dance. These dances were reminiscent of the dances of Orion slave girls, just not as well coordinated. ( ) As parents, Vulcans never shielded their children from the truth. Doing so only hindered their ability to cope with inevitable difficulties. A Vulcan parent's attachment to their children could not be described as an emotion. They were part of the parent's identity and the parent was incomplete without them. ( ) Vulcans sometimes had mates chosen for them by their parents at the age of seven. The mates were joined in a ceremony that linked them telepathically in a manner that was "less than a marriage, more than a betrothal." When the two came of age and underwent the pon farr, the link compelled them to follow through with full marital rituals, which cemented their relationship. ( ; ) If, for whatever reason, the female did not wish to go through with the marriage, then the ceremony of koon-ut-kal-if-fee ("marriage or challenge") was invoked. The male fought for the right to keep his mate against a challenger of her choosing. The female became the property of the male who won the contest, unless he chose to release her. The koon-ut-kal-if-fee was a fight to the death. ( ) , the regenerated Spock went into pon farr on the Genesis Planet in what appeared to be the equivalent of his mid to late teens, despite not having a developed mind.}} As of 2266, hearsay held that Vulcan men treated their women strangely. ( ) Contrary to stereotype, Vulcans did possess emotions. For instance, emotions like remorse, relief, joy, and embarrassment were all displayed by Spock when he thought Captain Kirk was dead. ( ) Additionally, T'Pol showed romantic interest in Commander Tucker on , especially due to imbalances caused by exposure to trellium-D. ( ) Indeed, Vulcan emotions were far more intense, violent, and passionate than those of many other species, including even Humans. ( ) It was this passionate, explosive emotionality that Vulcans blamed for the vicious cycle of wars which nearly devastated their planet. As such, they focused their mental energies on mastering them. The essence of their logical society was in arriving at the truth through logical process. Emotions were illogical, thus making them impure, and deterrent to truth. Vulcans were born with the same emotions that afflicted their violent ancestors, but continual mental conditioning generally gave them the impassivity they sought. ( ) Though not all could arrive at the ultimate pure logical state, the exacting process of mental control gave Vulcans enough to conform to the ideals of Vulcan society. The ultimate level of logical thought was achieved through the attainment of kolinahr, which was said to purge them of all remaining emotions. ( ) Vulcans believed knowledge to be the best defense against unknown dangers, and pursued it with the intellect and logic that made them some of the finest scholars in the Federation. Vulcans considered death to be the completion of a journey. Therefore, they did not fear it happening; however, the loss of one's katra was to be avoided if possible, since the katra lived on beyond the physical death. ( ) They also practiced euthanasia for the infirm and elderly, and saw nothing wrong with practicing ritual suicide when they reached a certain infirmity with age. ( ) As they knew death was an inevitability, they believed that fear of death was ultimately illogical. (Star Trek Beyond) Although Vulcans were highly integrated into the Federation, in the 23rd century, some Vulcans viewed service in Starfleet to be less prestigious than attending the Vulcan Science Academy, ( ) though in the twilight years of that century, this apparently became much less of an issue. ( ) Furthermore, among all the Federation members whose people served in Starfleet, Vulcans were the only ones to be accommodated with starships crewed entirely by their own species, such as the and the . ( ; ) Culture and tradition Meditation is central component of Vulcan life. Vulcans were fermenting wines, notably Vulcan port, during the 21st century. ( ) , where he noted, "My father's race was spared the dubious benefits of alcohol" when offered a glass of Saurian brandy by Dr. McCoy.|T'Pol also noted in that Vulcans didn't drink wine, indicating that perhaps Vulcan port was for cultural purposes only, or perhaps was nonalcoholic.|In , Tuvok offered to accompany Captain Janeway in drinking wine in a holodeck simulation, possibly further contradicting T'Pol's claims that Vulcans didn't drink wine. This could also have been just a personal choice between Vulcans or that Vulcans hadn't yet built a tolerance for alcoholic beverages. Events in suggested that beverages such as champagne may have contained synthehol rather than alcohol, which was not as intoxicating; it could be that Tuvok's offer was to drink a syntheholic wine, rather than an alcoholic one.}} Although not always, most Vulcans were vegetarians. They also did not touch food with their hands unless wearing special gloves. ( ) Guests in a Vulcan household were expected to rise before sunrise to prepare the morning meal. ( ) Plomeek broth was considered a traditional Vulcan breakfast. ( ) Vulcans played a game known as kal-toh. ( ) What little is known about Vulcan religious beliefs indicates that, beginning prior to the "Time of the Awakening", they were polytheistic. Surak's teachings became the primary focus of Vulcan spirituality/mysticism, but, as late as the 23rd century, it was still not unheard of to find Vulcans honoring the traditional gods. There were, however, no demons in Vulcan literature. ( ; ; ) Many Vulcan females had names beginning with "T'P" (T'Pol, T'Pring, T'Pau, T'Pel, T'Pan), but not all (Valeris, Sakonna, Saavik, Selar); many males had names beginning with "S" (Spock, Sarek, Sybok, Surak, Stonn, Soval); again, though, there was variation (Tuvok, Lojal, Vorik, Taurik, Koss). Touching each other with both the middle- and the forefinger was a custom practiced by married couples and was part of the Vulcan marriage ceremony. ( ; ; ) It could also help to calm down male Vulcans during pon farr. ( ) Vulcans had a traditional funeral dirge. ( ) , Vulcans were said to routinely put erasers on pencils, as "a courtesy to Earth visitors."}} Vulcans occasionally gave gifts. However, Vulcan custom did not include receiving a gift back from a recipient. ( ) Education Children at Vulcan nursery schools danced. ( ) When they were older, they learned in skill domes. The Vulcan Learning Center employed these. ( , ) A Vulcan program suitable for young children which taught basic problem solving skills was available at Deep Space 9's school in 2370. ( ) The Vulcan Science Academy and Vulcan Medical Institute were two notable post-secondary institutions. Holidays * Kal Rekk * Rumarie * Tal-Shanar ;See also *History *Mysticism *Philosophy *Language *Salute *Mating rituals *Mythology People Vulcans did possess family names, although they were pronounceable by Humans only after many years of practice. ( ) *List of Vulcans *List of unnamed Vulcans Science and technology *Vulcan starships *Vulcan starship classes Appendices Appearances A list of all appearances of Vulcans (excluding the regular appearances of Spock, Tuvok, and T'Pol): * ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** * ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** * ** ** ** ** (Excalbian recreation only) * ** ** * TOS films: ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** * ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** (footage from "The Dauphin") ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** * TNG films: ** ** ** ** * ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** * ** ** (illusion only) ** ** ** ** (hologram only) ** ** ** ** (Species 8472 posing as Vulcan) ** ** ** (illusion only) ** ** (hologram only) ** (hologram only) ** ** Background information The Vulcans were the first alien species created for Star Trek by Gene Roddenberry. ( , text commentary, ENT Season 1 DVD special feature) The term "Vulcanian" has been described as an "Obsolete term meaning a native of the planet Vulcan. The term 'Vulcan' has come to mean both the planet and the native of same." (Star Trek Concordance, p. 248) The origin of the term from a production standpoint dates to , when NBC prepared a twelve-page booklet, entitled "Advance Information on 1966- Programming: Star Trek", which described the series' regular crewmembers. The description of Spock mentions that his father was a native of "Vulcanis," and his people were known as the "Vulcanians". (The Star Trek Compendium, p. 25) As a result of early "growing pains" in the writing staff, the term "Vulcanian" was used sporadically (and sometimes interchangeably) during the first season, where it was heard in , , , , and . The Bajorans suffered similar "growing pains" when they were briefly known as the "Bajora" during their early appearances. The name "Vulcan" itself, in reference to the people, was first heard in . See also: Vulcanian expedition and Vulcanian Scientific Legion of Honor. In notes that Costume Designer Robert Fletcher wrote about the various aliens in the film , he included a description of the Vulcans. After pointing out the Vulcans were "from tv series", the brief continued as follows: "Observed in the movie as Mr. Spock, others among crew, and the Masters on Vulcan planet scene. Unemotional, scientific people, their culture based on cold logic, reason and control. One of the Federation's most advanced races .... Vulcans are mostly tall, slender, beautiful people, with strong sense of honor. Physically distinguished by upswept eyebrows and pointed ears. Their green blood is copper-based." Fletcher also imagined that, because their homeworld was rich in jade, the Vulcans made extensive use of that substance, such as with ruby jewellry and a red-colored giant statue is visible on the planet's surface, in the film. (The Making of Star Trek: The Motion Picture, p. 133) The depiction of Vulcans developed with the introduction of Tuvok on , as he was the first black Vulcan main character. In developing the character of Tuvok, the series' creators tried to put a new spin on the long-established alien species. However, Executive Producer and series co-creator Jeri Taylor later stated, "Subsequently I have learned we were not the first. In the third feature there was a black Vulcan priestess, so it was clearly established there were different colors of people on Vulcan." (Taylor's statement is not entirely true, as the black Vulcan priestess was actually in the fifth Star Trek film, .) When he was cast as Tuvok, actor Tim Russ was an expert on Vulcans, and, in fact, his expertise of portraying a member of the species got him the part. (Cinefantastique, Vol. 27, No. 4/5, pp. 59 & 60) "People are always asking me how there could even be a black Vulcan," said Russ, shortly after the start of VOY Season 1. "If Vulcans are humanoids and other humanoids were the species they most often encountered, then logic would follow that because of genetic mutation and random selection, you're going to have different colors and different variations of the species at one time. So, Tuvok is a black Vulcan." ( ) In a story idea that the writers had that eventually became the two-parter and , the Vulcans were to withdraw from the Federation. The cause of this schism was to be their concern that the Federation was becoming too concerned with the Changeling infiltration at the cost of civil liberties. Starfleet was to assume incorrectly that the Founders had infiltrated Vulcan society. (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion) Regarding the depiction of crazed Vulcan crewmembers of the starship Seleya in , Brannon Braga once remarked, "I loved the idea of Vulcan zombies." ( ) In the unproduced animated series Star Trek: Final Frontier, set in the far future, the Vulcans left the Federation at some point in the 25th century to discuss reunification with the Romulans. In an ultimately unused line of dialogue from the script of , Spock explained, " Cthia' is the stricture that binds our emotions... but few of us are that perfectly Vulcan." http://www.imsdb.com/scripts/Star-Trek.html For , Vulcan ear prosthetics, in encapsulated silicone, were created by makeup artist David Snyder. A few changes were made to the Vulcan ears when compared to those from the previous film, , on which Snyder had also worked. David LeRoy Anderson, the Makeup Department Head for Into Darkness, explained, "Our modifications were strictly mechanical, based on Dave's desire to make the application a little easier. Dave did a clay press of the existing sculpt and remodeled the ears to help mass-produce the pieces, and that gave us great edges." The ears were applied by Snyder, using a cotton swab, and (at least in the case of Zachary Quinto as ) a tiny amount of acetone. (Cinefex, No. 134, p. 77) Apocrypha According to Star Fleet Medical Reference Manual (published in 1977 by "Star Fleet Productions, Inc."): *Males height = 2.0 meters (6'6") *Males weight = 70 kilograms (154.3 lbs) *Females height = 1.7 meters (5'6") *Females weight = 50 kilograms (110.2 lbs) *Body temperature = 32.78 °C (91 °F) *Heart rate = 242 bpm *Blood pressure = 80/40 Vulcan blood vessels are more dilated than humans'. The larger blood vessels are the reason Vulcan blood pressure is lower. The dilated blood vessels and fast heart rate also play a key role in regulating Vulcan body temperature. A standard 91°F body temperature is maintained by the internal cooling mechanism of fast blood circulation. (Star Fleet Medical Reference Manual) Vulcans do not have sweat glands, and cannot rely on evaporation as a means of cooling their bodies in the harsh heat of their planet's desert climate. Expelling heat through radiation is insufficient. Vulcans evolved an internal cooling mechanism. With an average body temperature of 91 °F, the high blood flow circulates cool blood throughout their body. (Star Fleet Medical Reference Manual) This systematic means of cooling gives credence to McCoy's comment "that green ice water you call blood." ( ) While implies that Vulcans were not warp-capable until at least 1947, in the novel they already possessed such technology in 1908: a Vulcan survey ship was responsible for the mysterious , redirecting a large meteor about to hit Western Europe – where it would have killed millions and done irreparable damage to Human civilization – so that it instead impacted in an area so remote that no Human deaths were recorded. External links * * ca:Vulcanians zh-cn:瓦肯人 cs:Vulkánec de:Vulkanier es:Vulcanos fr:Vulcain it:Vulcaniano ja:ヴァルカン mu:Vulcan nl:Vulcan pl:Wolkanie pt:Vulcano ru:Вулканцы sv:Vulcaner eo:Vulkananoj Category:Species Category:Vulcan Vulcan